Closeness
by oneplumshortofafruitpie
Summary: There are so many simple ways they might figure out how they feel. This is a short story about one of them.


Haru flicked off the video game and went to flop down on Makoto's bed, where Makoto had already laid back and was taking his glasses off and setting them on the night stand.

"Ne, Haru, you wear this shirt a lot when you stay over," Haru's eyes jumped to where Makoto's fingers lightly brushed his stomach while grabbing the hem of his shirt. He felt a small shiver crawl up his spine from the brief contact. "Do you like it or something?"

After some more prodding and some outright ridiculous puppy eyes, Haru reluctantly admitted he did like to wear the big orange and white shirt.

"It…reminds me that you're safe, and to make sure it stays that way," Haru continued. He thought back to when Makoto almost drowned while trying to save Rei, trying not to make it too apparent that it is the main reason he wears the shirt. The shirt reminds him that Makoto came back, and he always will so long as Haru protects him. "It's also all soft and loose…"

"_HARU!_" The next thing he knew, Makoto had somehow managed to grab him into a tight hug while still lying down. Of course, Makoto must have been able to tell he was more emotional about it than he let on.

"I'm so sorry. I remember exactly how that feels… when you almost drowned in the river when we were younger I… I don't _ever_ want you to feel like that! I was being reckless. I'm sorry, I just went on impulse, I couldn't do nothing… but i should've called for you or…" Haru was blushing like mad at this point, his face being shoved in Makoto's neck via the thick arms wrapped around his shoulders (plus, admittedly, the leg between his was distracting). "I am just really sorry... Though I have to admit I'm kinda happy you wear this for a reason like that. It makes me realize that Haru-chan cares about me almost as much as I care about him."

Haru was quiet for a moment, but nuzzled his face further into Makoto's neck to hide how emotional he was. He grabbed fistfuls of the shirt at Makoto's shoulders.

"How do you know I'm not the one who cares about you more?" He mumbled into Makoto, who chuckled.

"Because that's impossible! I care about you way too much for there to be a 'more'…" The sentence had sounded so sincere by the end that they were both quiet for a while.

They silently listened to each other's breathing.

"…Haru? Is it…" For some reason Haru's heart picked up it's pace. "Is it alright if we sleep like this?"

The request was quiet and shy, as he squeezed Haru with his arms still wrapped around him.

Haru's answer was to throw his leg over makoto's hip, his calf resting on makoto's thigh.

Haru felt Makoto's chest stop moving.

"_Haru._"

A large hand went into Haru's hair and held his head tighter to his chest. Haru wrapped his arms further around the broad, warm back and pressed his palms flat to feel the small movements of his muscles and breathing.

Yet suddenly Makoto released Haru.

He started to get up, saying, "Ah. Maybe we'd better not after all! I mean what if we're like that in the morning and one of my family members decides to come in or-"

Haru could sense his discomfort and watched him face away standing up and rubbing the back of his head-a nervous tick of his.

"…You find it gross." Haru thought he had to be right. Makoto has to know that Haru wasn't simply thinking platonic things. I mean, that leg over his hip was 'friendly' in an entirely different way, and Makoto definitely wasn't actually worried about his family who never entered his room in the mornings.

Makoto turned around quickly looking worried; he could hear the small hint of hurt in Haru's voice.

"What! Hugging you like that? Of course I don-"

"No. Because you know." Haru asserted quietly, now sitting up on the bed, looking down at his lap.

"…Huh? Know what?"

He just got up and went to the closet looking for the extra futon.

"Haru-chan? ...Haru_._ What is it?"

Haru started pulling the futon out onto Makoto's floor.

"Will it be okay if I stay over if I sleep here?" Haru yanked out some blankets that tumbled to the floor.

"What? Obviously you can still stay over! Haru, what's going on?"

He just continued to set up his blankets.

"Haru! …Hey. Haru. Haru, stop!" Makoto grabbed his wrist and spun him around to take ahold of his shoulders. "Haru! Don't shut me out. Please tell me what's going on. I can't always tell."

Blue eyes stared intently at the ground, wondering if the green ones boring into him really couldn't see.

"Did I hurt your feelings earlier? Is that it?"

Haru didn't respond. The hands dropped from his shoulders.

"I'm sorry. I know we've always been comfortable with being close, and I was happy with being extra close like that but…" Haru looked up to find Makoto's light pink face turned away, but he could see the sad shimmer in his eye. "But that's the problem. I was too happy. Too happy to be holding you like that…"

Haru's heart stuttered in his chest and a warm feeling began prickling under his skin.

Makoto dropped his head into his hand as he continued, sounding miserable, "You're definitely the one who thinks it's gross now, right?"

Haru watched Makoto's shoulders draw up toward his ears; a sign he was on the verge of tears.

"Idiot!" He whacked Makoto on the back of the head, who lifted his face back up to look at Haru with wide eyes.

Haru turned red and dropped his face onto Makoto's chest.

"Um…Haru? Did you understand what I meant just now?"

"I hope so," He felt Makoto's chest stop moving under his forehead for the second time that night. "But…it probably wouldn't hurt if you were clear about it…"

Haru lifted his face a bit to peer at Makoto's reaction from under his lashes. His eyes were wider than earlier and his face was the color of a tomato, but he used a finger to tilt Haru's chin up so they could clearly see each other's faces.

They stare for a moment, feeling the world grow quiet around them.

"Haru…when I said earlier that there's no way you care about me more than I care about you, I meant it. Because… I love you. So, so much. I-I am _in_ love with you. Very in love. I know you're it for me. Should…should I be sorry for that…?"

Haru's eyes stung and his lip quivered. He couldn't believe the words he just heard. They were better than he had admittedly dreamed about. They were so cheesy, and romantic, and _sincere,_ and so…Makoto.

He shook his head quickly.

"I…love _you_."

Haru was surprised he was able to get it out without his voice cracking. But his tears trickled out when he saw Makoto's face so full of unbounded joy and love like he'd never seen on him before. It made his chest fill with a gentle pulsing heat.

Makoto grabbed Haru's right hand with both of his and kissed his knuckles reverently.

"I can't believe it…you-you really mean it."

He pressed Haru's palm to his face and exhaled shakily. A tear trailed down his cheek when he closed his eyes in a soft yet radiant smile. Haru wiped the tear away with his free hand.

"Why are we crying?" A soft smile came to Makoto's face as he spoke, and he laughed lightly. "I've never cried from happiness before. But, I've also never been this happy."

Haru's breath caught as he stared at this beautiful person. Makoto smiled even wider and dropped Haru's hand and instead cupped his face, his fingers trailing into his silky, black hair. He pressed their foreheads together, and Haru's heart began to race.

Makoto abruptly wrapped his arms around Haru's shoulders and pulled him into a tight hug. He nuzzled his nose in Haru's hair and sighed.

"So…can we still sleep like that?"

In leu of a response, Haru immediately grabbed one of makoto's arms from around his shoulders and dragged him to the bed where they flopped down unceremoniously. Haru was toward the wall again and Makoto on the other side of the bed looking ruffled. Haru tugged on Makoto's shirt until he moved closer and tossed his leg over him to pull their hips closer. He left it draped there, finding that he liked it earlier.

They laid like that on their sides, Haru using Makoto' s arm as a pillow, gazing at each other without holding back. Makoto looked surprised yet pleased. He lifted his free arm to run his fingers through Haru's hair, when out of no where a big grin appeared on his face.

"What?"

"Oh, I'm just thinking that now maybe we can do this more often. I feel so lucky."

Haru blushed bright red but couldn't look away from Makoto's eyes. That is, until they he couldn't resist his eyes flickering to his lips. His breathing halted as he watched Makoto's eyes do the same.

Makoto's hand stilled in Haru's black locks and his expression began to cloud over with something new to Haru's eyes.

Haru instinctively started to lean in slightly. Makoto's gaze quickly went from his lips to his eyes and back again before slowly, finally, closing the only distance left between them.

* * *

If you read my MakoHarus you can probably tell what my head canons are, and that I like discovery of love stories…


End file.
